The present invention relates to the field of medical devices, and more specifically, to a multidepth tissue oximeter.
Medical devices are among the marvels of modern medicine. Doctors and people use medical devices to help treat patients who suffer from injuries, diseases, and the consequences of old age. Some revolutionary medical devices include the balloon catheter, oximeter, stent, and shunt. Over the years, these have improved the lives of many millions of people—allowing them to live better, longer, and more fulfilling lives.
Medical devices continue to evolve and improve. Today's medical devices are more durable, dependable, and easier to use than those introduced just a few years ago.
Despite the widespread success of current medical devices, there is a need for new and improved medical devices that provide greater features and functionality, and devices which generally help improve the lives of human beings and other animals.
Oximeters are medical devices used to measure oxygen saturation of tissue in patients. Typically, an oximeter takes a measurement at a single depth below the surface of the tissue. For some medical procedures such as buried flap monitoring, abdominal organ tissue oxygenation measurement, and cerebral oxygenation measurement, it is important to obtain oxygen saturation readings at numerous depths below the surface of the tissue.
However, the typical oximeter does not measure oxygen saturation at numerous depths. Moreover, the typical oximeter is not capable of targeting specific regions or specific layers of tissue. This can result in inaccurate readings of the oxygen saturation for the desired layer of tissue to be measured.
Therefore, there is a need to provide improved tissue oximeter systems and techniques.